WASHINGTON: The loud crackling sound you heard at the CNN Townhall meeting in Wisconsin featuring the three Republican Presidential aspirants was the party of Abraham Lincoln fracturing.
Variously dubbed as God’s Own Party and Grumpy Old Party, the GOP, which actually stands for Grand Old Party, came apart quite publicly on Tuesday after the three remaining aspirants for the party nomination for the Presidential race reneged on a promise to support the eventual nominee as required under a pledge they had taken.
The candidates, in particular front-runner Donald Trump squabbled like school kids, inviting a public rebuke from CNN anchor Anderson Cooper that he was making arguments worthy of a five-year old.
"No, I don't anymore," Trump said, when asked by Cooper if he stood by his pledge to “support whoever the Republican nominee is,” as per the undertaking all candidates had given to the party. Trump went on to complain that he has "been treated very unfairly" by the Republican National Committee and party establishment figures, amid speculation that he will be upstaged at the party convention in Cleveland in July and denied the nomination through political machinations.
Earlier, Trump’s bitter rival Ted Cruz, when asked the same question, declared "I'm not in the habit of supporting someone who attacks my wife and my family ... I think nominating Donald Trump would be an absolute trainwreck, I think it would hand the general election to Hillary Clinton."
Third-placed John Kasich also bailed out on the pledge, demonstrating the written promise they had made to the party establishment wasn’t worth the paper it was written on.
The pledge, circulated by GOP officials in August stated: "I, ________, affirm that if I do not win the 2016 Republican nomination for President of the United States I will endorse the 2016 Republican presidential nominee regardless of who it is." The candidates also pledged “not seek to run as an independent or write-in candidate nor will I seek or accept the nomination for president of any other party."
Apparently, all bets are off now.
The spat between frontrunner Trump and second-placed Cruz has gotten ugly after their campaigns used (pictures of) their wives in the nomination fight. In response to Cruz’s supporters using a semi-clothed photo of Trump’s wife to make the point he was not fit to be President, Trump reposted an image that compared his svelte wife with an unflattering photo of Heidi Cruz.
Anderson Cooper called him out on this.
“I thought it was a nice picture of Heidi, I thought it was fine,” Trump maintained.
“C’mon,” Cooper responded.
“I thought it was fine. She’s a pretty woman,” Trump insisted.
“You’re running for president of the United States,” Cooper reminded him.
Trump: “I didn’t start it. I didn’t start it.”
Cooper: “Sir, with all due respect, that’s the argument of a 5-year-old.”
Trump: “I didn’t start it. No it’s not.”
No one has an idea where this is going. If Trump is denied the nomination, or the support of the sections of the party that back Cruz and Kasich, the upshot could be a crushing defeat for the Grand Old Party, founded in 1854 as the Republican Party, and the fount of 18 Presidents starting with Abraham Lincoln in 1861.
There have been 16 Democratic Presidents. A 17th could be a shoo-in if the GOP goes to pieces.